EUROPEAN HISTORY, 1900-1960

1. MOROCCO

Algeciras Conference

The first testing-ground of the European alignments was Morocco. France, by her agreements with Italy in 1902 and with Britain in 1904, had been promised that these two Powers would not interfere with the furthering of French interests in Morocco. Important though this would be for both France and Morocco, it had still wider implications. Morocco was the last North African territory to come under the controlling influence of a European Power: Egypt was a British `sphere of influence'; Italy had secured a free hand in Tripoli; Tunis and Algeria were French territories; and now France was to be allowed to concern herself in Morocco which hitherto had been an independent Moham­medan State. There would thus be no room for any other European Power to squeeze into Mediterranean Africa.

Germany particularly resented being thus shut out. What con­cerned her even more than the commercial gains to her competitors was what she regarded as the loss of prestige through being ignored in the scramble for North Africa. Moreover, the advantage had gone to her political rival France and to the latter's new friends Italy and Britain.

German resentment was expressed in typical fashion by Kaiser William II who in March 1905 landed at the Moroccan port, Tangier, where he delivered an angry speech in which he congratu­lated the Moroccan Sultan upon his independence and assured him of German support in maintaining it. Though this claim of Moroccan independence may have been politically correct, the Kaiser's method and timing in asserting it was a deliberate and public challenge to France. French public opinion boiled with indignation, its mouthpiece being Delcasse who was prepared to go to all lengths in order to rebut German interference. But the French Government knew that there were limits beyond which it could not go with safety. Its ally Russia, recently beaten by Japan, was in no condition to offer support; nor had France any claim to military support from Britain. Moreover, Italy, having a foot iii both alliances, could not be relied upon in an emergency. Thus t lie French Government had to decide whether, in the last resort, it could afford to risk being isolated in a conflict with Germany, and perhaps also with Austria, for the sake of pushing French interests in Morocco. The Government therefore yielded to German pressure: Delcasse, who personified the antagonism towards Germany, was dismissed from office, and France agreed to the holding of an international conference to decide the status of Morocco.

In April 1906 the Conference assembled at Algeciras in southern Spain. It looked as though Germany had won the first round of her contest with France, but events at the Conference showed that she had over-reached herself. Instead of being overawed by Germany's aggressiveness, the other Powers held together to resist her claims. Of the twelve members of the Conference, the only once to support Germany was her ally Austria-Hungary. The other leading Powers - Britain, Russia, Italy, Spain, and the U.S.A. - all were pro-French, and the other members followed this lead.

Two questions were on the Conference agenda, namely, Moroccan finance and public order. The first was settled by establishing an international bank which was to be controlled by the Bank of I England, the Bank of France, the Bank of Spain, and the German Imperial Bank. This would mean that, in the event of disputes About financial policy, the Germans would be outvoted by the other three. The policing of Morocco was to be carried out jointly by France and Spain - to the exclusion of Germany. Thus France by her moderation gained more than if she had adopted the aggressive policy of Delcasse. Germany had suffered a major diplomatic set-back. In face of this there were two alternative policies that she might adopt. Either she could try to allay European fears by a more moderate and peaceable attitude, or she could equip herself until she was strong enough to dominate Europe and recover the prestige that she had lost. With William II in command, moderation was impossible. He burned with a desire to give to Germany `a place in the sun'.

Algeciras Conference